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Project Site : Sundarban
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Project area : The Sundarbans in West Bengal
The mangrove-dominated Ganges delta - the Sunderbans - is a complex ecosystem comprising one of the three largest single tract mangrove forests of the world. Shared between two neighbouring countries, Bangladesh and India , the larger part (62% of the total mangrove ecosystem) is situated in the southwest corner of Bangladesh and the rest in West Bengal India . To the south, the forest meets the Bay of Bengal ; to the east it is bordered by the Baleshwar River and to the north there is a sharp interface with intensively cultivated land. Extensive embankments and polders everywhere impede the natural drainage in the upstream areas, other than the main river channels. The total land area is 4,143 km² (including exposed sandbars - 42 km²) and the remaining water area of 1,874 km² encompasses rivers, small streams and canals. Rivers in the Sunderbans are meeting places of salt water and freshwater. Thus, it is a region of transition between the freshwater of the rivers originating from the Ganges and the saline water of the Bay of Bengal
Sundarban is the conglomeration of 102 islands in the southern most part of West Bengal in the lap of Bay of Bengal . The Indian part of
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Sundarban covering 40% of the total Sundarban has 54 human habitated islands and 48 islands under Reserve Forest . There are 19 blocks, mainly known under Sundarban area with a population of 3.75 million resulting in a, population density of 952 people per square km. The literacy varies between 63% for male and 32% for the female persons. The area contains 1064 villages inhabiting about 5,40,000 families of which 85% depending on agriculture and also 41% families are below poverty line.
The Sundarban are a typically low-lying area (61% low land, 28% medium land and 11% high land) with an annual average rainfall of 1920 mm and with a total river embankment length of 3500km.
Source of information: D.P. Jana, ed. (2003): Sreekhanda Sundarban, ABC Printers, Kolkata 006
Project villages
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